William Ronald (Bill) Durnan
BIOGRAPHY
- BORN: Toronto, Ontario, January 22, 1916.
- DIED: October 31, 1972.
- HEIGHT: 6'0"-6'2"
- WEIGHT: 190 lbs.
- UNIFORM #:
- CATCHES: Both
- STYLE:
- STRENGTHS:
- WEAKNESSES:
QUOTABLE:
"It (being ambidextrous) was a tremendous asset and I owe that gift to Steve
Faulkner, one of my coaches in a church league in Toronto when I was just a
youngster. Steve showed me how to switch the stick from one hand to the
other. It wasn't easy at first because I was so young and the stick seemed
so heavy. But Steve kept after me and gradually the stick became lighter
and I could switch it automatically." (Inside Sports: Hockey, 1997)
TRANSACTIONS:
- Signed as free agent by Montreal Canadiens, October 30, 1943.
- Forced to retire in the middle of the 1950 Stanley Cup playoffs due to frayed nerves, 1950.
- Named head coach of Ottawa Senators (QMHL), September 13, 1950.
ACCOLADES:
- Named to National Hockey League All-Star First Team, 1943-44.
- Winner, Vezina Trophy, 1943-44.
- Member of Stanley Cup-winning Montreal Canadiens, 1944.
- Named to National Hockey League All-Star First Team, 1944-45.
- Winner, Vezina Trophy, 1944-45.
- Named to National Hockey League All-Star First Team, 1945-46.
- Winner, Vezina Trophy, 1945-46.
- Member of Stanley Cup-winning Montreal Canadiens, 1946.
- Named to National Hockey League All-Star First Team, 1946-47.
- Winner, Vezina Trophy, 1946-47.
- Played in National Hockey League All-Star Game, 1947.
- Played in National Hockey League All-Star Game, 1948.
- Named to National Hockey League All-Star First Team, 1948-49.
- Winner, Vezina Trophy, 1948-49.
- Played in National Hockey League All-Star Game, 1949.
- Named to National Hockey League All-Star First Team, 1949-50.
- Winner, Vezina Trophy, 1949-50.
- Elected to Hockey Hall of Fame, 1964.
INJURIES:
RECORDS:
- First goaltender to win Vezina Trophy four consecutive seasons, 1944-47.
- Between February 26 and March 6, 1949, Bill set the modern National Hockey League record for longest shutout sequence
(309 minutes, 21 seconds), recording four consecutive shutouts along the way. Durnan held the record until early 2004,
when Phoenix's Brian Boucher eclipsed him.
PENALTY SHOTS:
- Stopped penalty shot (Virgil Johnson), April 13, 1944 [postseason].
DID YOU KNOW?
- Bill served as captain of the Montreal Canadiens, 1947-48.
SEASON RECORDS:
REGULAR SEASON
Year Team GP Min W L T GA GAA Shots Sv% ShO G A PiM S/60 PERS
31-32 North Toronto Juniors TJHL 8 480 17 2.12 1
32-33 Sudbury Wolves NOHA 6 360 6 1.00 2
33-34 Toronto Torontos TIHL 11 660 21 1.91 4
Toronto British Consol TMHL 15 910 12 2 1 31 2.04 1
34-35 Toronto All-Stars TIHL 2 120 9 4.50 0
Toronto McColl TMHL 15 900 62 4.13 0
35-36 Toronto Dominions TMHL 1 60 0 1 0 6 6.00 0
36-37 Kirkland Lake Blue Dev.NOHA 4 240 4 0 0 5 1.25 0
37-38 Kirkland Lake Blue Dev.NOHA 11 610 8 1 1 27 2.66 1
Kirkland Lake ALLAN CUP 2 120 0 2 0 11 5.50 0
38-39 Kirkland Lake Blue Dev.NOHA 7 420 7 0 0 7 1.00 3
Kirkland Lake ALLAN CUP 5 299 3 2 0 12 2.41 2
39-40 Kirkland Lake ALLAN CUP 17 1040 14 1 2 35 2.02 1
40-41 Montreal Royals QSHL 34 2000 100 3.00 1
Montreal Royals ALLAN CUP 14 850 8 5 1 49 3.46 1
41-42 Montreal Royals QSHL 39 2340 143 3.67 0
42-43 Montreal Royals QSHL 31 1860 130 4.19 0
43-44 Montreal Canadiens NHL 50 3000 38 5 7 109 2.18 2 0 0 0
44-45 Montreal Canadiens NHL 50 3000 38 8 4 121 2.42 1 0 0 0
45-46 Montreal Canadiens NHL 40 2400 24 11 5 104 2.60 4 0 0 0
46-47 Montreal Canadiens NHL 60 3600 34 16 10 138 2.30 4 0 0 0
47-48 Montreal Canadiens NHL 59 3505 20 28 10 162 2.77 5 0 0 5
48-49 Montreal Canadiens NHL 60 3600 28 23 9 126 2.10 10 0 0 0
49-50 Montreal Canadiens NHL 64 3840 26 21 17 141 2.20 8 0 1 2
SEVEN (7) NHL SEASONS 383 22945 208 112 62 901 2.36 34 0 1 7
POST-SEASON
Year Team GP Min W L T GA GAA Shots Sv% ShO G A PiM S/60 PERS
31-32 North Toronto Juniors TJHL 4 240 10 2.50 1
32-33 Sudbury Wolves NOHA 2 120 4 2.00 0
33-34 Toronto Torontos TIHL 1 60 0 1 0 5 5.00 0
Toronto British Consol TMHL 5 350 0 2 3 21 3.60 0
36-37 Kirkland Lake Blue Dev NOHA 4 240 1 0 3 8 2.00 1
37-38 Kirkland Lake Blue Dev NOHA 2 120 2 0 0 2 1.00 1
38-39 Kirkland Lake Blue Dev NOHA 2 120 2 0 0 3 1.50 1
40-41 Montreal Royals QSHL 8 480 8 0 0 24 3.00 1
42-43 Montreal Royals QSHL 4 240 11 2.75 0
43-44 Montreal Canadiens NHL 9 549 8 1 14 1.53 1 0 0 0
44-45 Montreal Canadiens NHL 6 373 2 4 15 2.41 0 0 0 0
45-46 Montreal Canadiens NHL 9 581 8 1 20 2.07 0 0 0 0
46-47 Montreal Canadiens NHL 11 720 6 5 23 1.92 1 0 0 0
48-49 Montreal Canadiens NHL 7 468 3 4 17 2.18 0 0 0 0
49-50 Montreal Canadiens NHL 3 180 0 3 10 3.33 0 0 0 0
SIX (6) NHL POSTSEASONS 45 2871 27 18 99 2.07 2 0 0 0
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